About Mark Olson John Leland Center

The John Leland Center for Theological Studies, headed by organization president Dr. Mark Olson, has educated and trained Baptist ministers since the late 1990s. John Leland Center for Theological Studies began thanks to the support of the Baptist General Association of Virginia, the District of Columbia Baptist Convention, and several other local Baptist associations and churches.

Columbia Baptist Church of Falls Church, Virginia, provided the center's initial location, and continued growth brought the center to its current home in Arlington. In 2003, an extension location at the First Baptist Church of Newport News enabled the organization to begin improving theological education for area churches.

Dr. Olson has continued to facilitate the center's expansion since he accepted its leadership in 2007. Successful in securing reaccreditation by the Association of Theological Schools, he has overseen graduation of the school's three largest classes and has bolstered minority student enrollment to comprise more than 50 percent of the total main campus student population. He has proven effective at improving the organization's financial position as well, having increased budgeted income by $250,000, and he has raised an additional $260,000 to add an integrated database system.